Lasershape satisfies architectural contract using large waterjet capability

"With our newly acquired, large format Waterjet Sweden machine we are one of very few UK suppliers with the capability to supply these parts," explains Lasershape director Tim Leam. "This is a very high quality office development, across 33 acres, which at present represents around 1.5 million sq ft of business space, so it's nice to be associated with such a prestigious project." Arranged as a necklace of several office buildings facing an inner garden complete with two-tier lake, waterfall and decked boardwalks, Chiswick Park is marketed as prestige business accommodation located just five miles from central London and eight miles from Heathrow. As part of a £2.5 million project to supply architectural steelwork, Lasershape has been contracted to manufacture the parts that make the colossal steel staircases, including 8.5 m long stringers which are made from 30 mm thick steel. Lasershape has already supplied three staircases for the 220,000 sq ft Building 6 at Chiswick Park, which has just been leased in its entirety to Norwegian oil company Aker Solutions. Aker plans to house its global engineering hub at the facility, where it will eventually create 1,300 jobs. The next three staircases, to be supplied early next year, are for Building 7, a 330,000 sqft facility that represents the final phase of Chiswick Park. "The 8.5 m stringers are supplied in a single piece from the WJS waterjet, because the quality requirements of the project are extremely high," says Mr Leam. "In fact, our customer won their order based on the single-piece sample we provided – competing tenders offered a fabricated solution." The recently installed WJS NC4060Q is claimed to be one of the largest waterjet machines in the UK. Powered by a 100 hp KMT pump, the jet produced by the WJS NC4060Q can cut steel up to 15 0mm thick. Already, sectors such as architecture and construction have been keen to take advantage, as the Chiswick Park project ably demonstrates. "The three staircases for Building 6 demanded three months of cutting, every day, which indicates the intense level of engagement required on this project," concludes Mr Leam. "Due to the size and weight of the parts involved, it took four hours just to load the raw material plates. Fortunately, it was all worthwhile – not only is our customer delighted with the results, so is Chiswick Park."